summer for real!

Yesterday was a fantastic last day of work. It began with a Goodbye card from the city secretary (so sweet!) who connected with me earlier in the summer based on our shared obsession with "So You Think You Can Dance." The attorneys seemed genuinely sorry to see me leave. They made a mini fuss about me at the staff meeting when they found out I had made Law Review. My supervisor made it clear that I had done a great job this summer and asked that I keep in touch. 

I think I was extremely lucky (do I keep saying this over and over? It's true) - I learned so much and was able to experience so much this summer during the eight week externship. The attorneys were great mentors and I feel as though my "lawyer" skills improved immensely over the course of the job. All in all, a wonderful first-job experience.

Currently I'm finishing up my paperwork - tomorrow I have to turn in my final reflection paper and examples of work product (I chose a mediation brief and the demurrer I wrote at the start of the summer). I'm also writing thank-you cards to the attorneys, per the suggestion of my supervisor. Lots to do today...

I see this next few weeks as my time to pause and breath between sprints (literally and figuratively). We have lots of preparation to do before the move - packing, buying of supplies, picking paint colors, purchasing furniture and appliances... the list goes on. I also will need to get mentally and physically ready for school to start again. Once the books arrive, it will feel more "real." Until then, I am already planning and scheduling my time between now and August 16th. (Apparently my 'relaxation' time needs to be tightly scheduled and choreographed - that's just how I am!)

I'm looking forward to falling back into a routine, but also am enjoying this semi-structured yet deadline-free time. More to report as things unfold...

K

Penultimate work day

SO today is my almost-last day of work. I really don't have that much to do, since very few projects can be started and wrapped up in two days. Thus, I blog.

This has been such a great job... the attorneys have been so friendly and helpful, and actually gave me many assignments where I was able to do lots of "real" lawyer work. I will leave this job with a decent amount of work product, (hopefully) stellar recommendations and 5 hours of school credit! I will be sad to leave this job, for sure, though I am happy to have a few precious weeks of freedom between tomorrow and the start of school.

I most likely will be spending this "free" time getting ready for the move. Lots of packing, lots of planning...

As soon as my school books arrive, I also need to get started on my first reading assignments. Law Review has already informed us that we have a production assignment due right after the first week of school. Busy busy!

More family!

Tomorrow I will be taking off work because my youngest brother is coming into town! Hooray! I haven't seen him since December when he and I drove his car from Austin to North Carolina right before the start of 2nd semester. I'm so excited to see him! AND extra added bonus, he just turned 21 so C and I will have to take him out legal-style!

The externship is winding down - my last day is next week. We've already ordered my textbooks for the next semester (almost $500, sheesh) which should arrive in the (hopefully) near future. Before I know it I'll be back in school mode...

BUT before then, hopefully we'll close on the house. We're just waiting for the loan to close at this point, after which we can set a signing date. Hopefully sooner than later... the time between end-of-work and start-of-school is very short...

I suppose C and I just love doing everything all at the same time and very quickly.

K

Good news!

I just got some awesome news!

I was invited to join my school's Law Review!

This means LOTS of extra work and energy, but it's quite an honor. The write-on competition was so long ago (the weekend after finals ended in May) that I had to search my computer for the essay I wrote because I couldn't remember my submission. I'm so glad to have made it! Because I'm not top 10% (I was top 20% at the end of 1L), I didn't automatically make Law Review. I 'wrote on,' meaning I was invited based on the merits of my paper.

What a great way to kick off the (almost) start of my 2L year! 

K

Still waiting to hear from Moot Court... more to come later!

Visitors!

This past month has been a little empty and lonely with C on the east coast for the past four weeks. It has been quite a challenge to coordinate with him, get all our documents signed, send our personal information to various necessary parties and otherwise wade through the red tape that is purchasing a house.

FORTUNATELY I was far from lonely this weekend! My awesome parents jumped on a plane early Friday morning in TX and came to CA for the weekend in order to visit and to take a look at our property in escrow. Straight off the airplane on Friday, quick stop to the apartment to drop off suitcases, then back in the car to meet our realtor at the house! Dad being Dad wanted to see EVERYTHING. This included shimmying up the hallway closet to the attic door (without a ladder, naturally) to take a look at the underside of the roof, and climbing up on the empty trash cans to take pictures of the roof from the outside.

I was incredibly nervous before their visit. It's overwhelming to be a first-time home buyer. I know that C and I are uniquely situated and am confident that we are making the right financial decision to buy property. I was concerned, however, that this older house was going to be more trouble than it's worth. The house was built in the 20's and has undergone a series of additions and renovations. Though we're already in escrow, I was fully prepared to cancel the whole deal if Dad and Mom had reservations about the house or found huge problems with the roof or foundation.

Good news, though - the house is structurally sound. As an older house, it has many minor issues that need to be monitored or addressed, but nothing that is a major deal-breaker! Also, we're getting the sellers to cover some of the minor fixes, including the installation of smoke detectors and building a weather-protected cover for the water heater at the back of the house. As of this weekend we are full-steam ahead! Just waiting to hear from the loan underwriters, then we should be able to close!

Besides the house visit, I had a great time with my parents in town - the last time they visited I had JUST moved out here and didn't really know where to take them. This time we ran around in Santa Monica on the Promenade, took a stroll down Rodeo Drive, hung out with friends in Redondo Beach, and my folks even made it down to Long Beach on Monday while I was at work. We rounded out the trip yesterday with a few hours at the Getty museum, where my parents took more pictures of the building's exterior and gardens than they did of the artwork inside. The weekend was so busy and flew by so quickly. I was sad to see them go back home, but happy that I was able to show off California more than I did last time.

It's hard to believe that two full years have almost passed since C and I, only married for three months, came out to California for the first time. Two years filled with making new friends, C's rotating jobs, my school adventures, occasional trips home, and PERFECT weather! Two years in which we have experienced our first earthquake (and second, and third) and have learned how to accept the ridiculous gas prices and occasionally horrendous traffic. Two years in the same tiny apartment, which we are now preparing to leave.

More news on the house as we get closer to closing!

K

News

I've been relatively busy since the last time I posted - busy being an adult.

With the husband out of town, I've been doing lots of (very necessary) apartment cleaning - getting into those boxes and piles that accumulated when we first moved in two years ago - the piles I would "get to" eventually. Very interesting living alone for this month. It occurs to me that I have never lived alone... went from home to college, back to home, then moved in with the husband. It is lonely sometimes, but I like being responsible for everything at home (except this week when the cable died - not really equipped to deal with that!).

The NEWS though, is that we are currently in escrow! We put an offer on a house in Hawthorne a few short weeks ago, have sent in waves and waves of paperwork and reports (all of which had to be signed and faxed in CA to DC, signed and faxed by C, then sent back to CA), and now finally are in escrow. Major hurdle #1 was done last week (the physical inspection), which showed no major damage or deal-breakers - TONS of little things, though. Major hurdle #2 was yesterday (the appraisal), but we haven't gotten the results of that yet. Major hurdle #3 will be the OK from my parents, who are flying out to CA this weekend to see the house in person.

It's scary but very exciting to think that we might OWN this house by the end of the summer. My goal was to get all of this done and to be moved in by the time school starts - on our current schedule, we will be cutting it very close.

I can see why most law students don't undergo such a life-changing process during the course of school - the stress and anxiety and TIME spent merely finding a house and putting in the offer has already been astronomical. Once we close, we have to get everything packed, move it, unpack it, change our address, etc, etc. Many awesome friends have offered to help us when the time comes... which is sweet... but the prospect of doing all this is quite overwhelming. Exponentially more overwhelming is the prospect of doing all this while also trying to start my 2L year... definitely glad I got the "marriage thing" out of the way before starting law school!

More as this develops,

K